


Chiaroscuro

by DandyWritesSometimes



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Undertale Multiverse | UTMV (Undertale), Dreamtale, Errortale, Gen, HorrorTale, InkTale, Killertale, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Underfell, Underlust, Undertale Spoilers, XTale, aftertale, dusttale, underswap - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-30
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-16 20:27:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29088309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DandyWritesSometimes/pseuds/DandyWritesSometimes
Summary: A long time ago, a war raged over the multiverse. Dream and Nightmare fought for balance of light and darkness. Ink and Error battled for the safety or destruction of universes. Entire worlds were shaken in the wake of this epic power struggle.But now, the war has ended. The brothers from the apple tree have died, and their affiliates have scattered across the multiverse in search of new purpose and healing.A new adventure takes place as these characters must continue living on... and as an old face makes an unwelcomed return.
Kudos: 14





	1. Prologue

_“Dream, Dream!” A voice calls out. The guardian of light opens his eyes. He’d been napping on a particularly sunny patch of wildflowers and grass. He stays still a few moments more, enjoying the peaceful birdsong. The sound of hooves gently treading along the ground prompts him to sit up. His golden eyes move up from the wildflowers of the meadow to a figure sitting atop an equine creature. The creature is broad and strong, with proud horns swirling out either side of its head. It makes a huffing noise and lowers its head to the little prince. The figure atop this creature is silhouetted in the bright sunlight. Dream reads the aura. Love, peace, and a bit of sly excitement. It’s none other than his dearest brother. He shields his eyes from the sun and grins._

_“Did you cause trouble again, Nightmare?” Dream asks of his brother. The other snorts._

_“That depends if I’m caught,” Nightmare chuckles. “I came here to wake you up, sleepyhead. You nap too much.”_

_“That’s because you keep me up all night with your ghost stories!” Dream crosses his arms and suppresses the shudder that threatens to run down his spine. Nightmare’s a little too good at telling scary stories._

_“Aww, I didn’t scare you that much, did I Little Light?” Nightmare just laughs again. He pulls the equine forward a bit. “I swear you’re going to bleach your bones, sitting out here in the sun all day. Hop on and I’ll give you a ride back to the temple.”_

_Dream stands and brushes loose flora off his clothing. His scarf trails on the ground as he walks over. Nightmare whistles for the stallion, and it responds by kneeling for Dream, who swings a leg over and straddles its back. Once Dream is mounted, the creature rises and makes a slow amble back to the village. Dream’s golden scarf blows a little in the wind. It’s rather majestic, he likes to think… Unlike Nightmare’s full cape, which threatens to flap in his face if he doesn’t hold it down. Oh, this is why Dream likes riding in front better… He hugs onto his brother’s thinner torso and tries to enjoy the moment regardless._

_“… I had a bad dream last night,” Dream comments to break the silence._

_Nightmare hums. “Do you want brotherly snuggles when we get home? Is that what you’re asking for?”_

_“No- Well, yes… I’d like that. But, in my dream, you were gone and I had to travel the worlds alone.”_

_“Don’t be silly. You know you can’t get rid of me that easily.” Nightmare tries to lighten Dream’s mood with a joke. “Besides, we promised once we figure out how leave, we’re going to travel together!”_

_Dream sighs and puts his head against his brother’s back. “That’s right. What a silly dream! We’ll always be together, right?”_

_“Always.”_

The sharp, cold pain drives its way through Dream’s ribcage. He vaguely recognizes the dull crunching noise as his own ribs making way for the alien substance driven through him. His bow is several feet away. It’s been snapped and shredded into golden slivers. A single arrow is in his hand, pierced through the ribcage of his assailant. His allies are not too far behind. Ink… Swap… They lie strewn across the floor of this desolate timeline. Dream has lost. But with his loss comes the downfall of his greatest enemy... and only brother. His sacrifice is not in vain, and he knows he can rest easy now in the afterlife. Through golden tears, he looks at the broken, ichor-dripping face of his brother.

“W-we’ll always… be together, right?” Dream’s voice is barely above a whisper. A dark, labored chuckle responds.

“Always.”


	2. A Journey Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two intrepid explorers enter the lair of the King of Darkness.

Wind howls and snow crunches as two travelers make their way through a barren universe. It’s just a fragment of a universe, void of all life… thanks to a battle that took place ages ago. The only structure still standing is a castle, black as night against the crisp white snow. The travelers are slowly making their way towards this grand temple.

“Keep up, or I’ll have to carry you again,” a deep voice grumbles.

The second voice is much softer in reply. “This place is giving me chills, Ash. Literally.”

The two stop. The taller one with the deep voice – Ash, presumably – reaches over and fluffs out the scarf of his shorter and heavier companion. “I warned you to wear something warm,” Ash chides.

“You also woke me up two hours ago and told me to pack light. This is the only shirt I have.” The shorter is wearing gym pants and a sleeveless hoodie, along with his treasured red scarf. He’s certainly not dressed for this weather.

“Even though you make a fair point, I objectively refuse to take responsibility for this. Come on, it’ll be warmer inside.”

Ash lets go and keeps moving. His companion stands still for a bit longer and looks around anxiously.

“Hollow!”

Hollow snaps out of his anxious daze and hurries to catch up with Ash. “I’m coming, I’m coming. Can you at least remind me why we’re here? These places bring back some bad memories. For you, I mean. I’ve never been here.”

“That’s easy,” Ash answers and grins at Hollow. “Now that the damn ‘King of Darkness’ is gone and dead, all his stuff is up for grabs. It’ll be quick. We walk in, avoid the traps, grab the loot, and walk right back out.”

“Traps? You never mentioned anything about traps!”

“Well, I did now. Chill. Back when they called me Dust, Papyrus and I would design a lot of them. I know how to avoid them properly.” Ash seems proud of this fact. Hollow’s learned to accept the mention of Papyrus with Ash. Apparently, the tall skeleton can communicate with his deceased brother. Who is Hollow to judge? The both of them wear the scarlet scarves of their respective brothers, after all. He’s learned to consider it a uniting similarity.

Hollow huffs. “So… Have you and Papyrus talked recently?”

Ash pauses, then shakes his head. “No. He’s still mad at me. But he’ll come around, he’s a smart guy.” The two continue walking in silence. Hollow is given some time to reflect before the inevitable regret he’ll feel after this adventure. He’s been feeling a lot of regret lately, ever since he started travelling with Ash.

It was only a month ago that Hollow was trapped in that abysmal SAVE screen. Back then, he called himself Geno, player of a dangerous gambling game. A game he intended to win by watching his timeline continue on without him and guiding each reset’s new Sans to do his bidding. With only a sliver of a soul to call his own, he always imagined it impossible to escape his spectating fate. But one day, that idiot tumbled into his little hell-void and offered him something he couldn’t refuse. Freedom. He really should have CHECKed the stranger before accepting, but loneliness can make one insane… and insanity makes one desperate. Since then, his DETERMINATION-filled soul has been tied to the Dust’s concerningly high LOVE. Does he regret this companionship in the first place? Perhaps a little. Now that he knows he won’t die immediately after leaving his little corner of a void, the fact that he might die someday looms over him. It’s a fear he never thought he’d have. But he tries to think of the bright side. His DT gives Ash more power, and Ash’s LV gives him physical and magical stability. The combination of the two gives the both of them the ability to travel as they please.

Hollow is brought out of his thoughts when Ash begins snapping his fingers at him. “Hey,” Ash barks, “pay attention. We’re here.” A huge door fashioned of stone and wood stands before them. Engraved in it are small silvery details. It’s an incredibly ornate showpiece… before Ash kicks through a soft spot in the wood and steps into the hole he made. “Follow my footsteps closely. We don’t want to trigger something ‘unhappy’.” Only a squeak and a nod come from Hollow, who takes a hold of Ash’s sleeve just in case. Ash walks rather calmly, occasionally stopping at certain points to walk around seemingly nothing. He designed these himself, after all, and probably remembers every detail. Probably. Hollow matches Ash’s footsteps exactly for fear of mis-stepping.

“Hey, Ash,” Hollow speaks up after a few minutes. He grew tired of the silence. The only response earned is a soft grunt from Ash, which Hollow takes as a welcome to continue. “I know you worked under this ‘Nightmare’ guy. You never told me what he was like.”

Ash stops in his tracks for a few moments to think, causing Hollow to gently bump into him. He continues walking soon enough. “Not a real great guy. Then again, neither was I. He promised me an escape from Chara’s game if I swore loyalty to him. I planned on ditching him the moment he gave me freedom, but uh… I underestimated how powerful he was. Gods, the guy was crazy. A freak of nature with a silver tongue. He used every bit of leverage he had over all of us to keep us in line.” He goes silent for a minute while Hollow processes this. He then adds, “Hell am I glad that guy’s dead.”

That prompts Hollow’s next question: “How did he die? If he was so powerful, what killed him?”

“Not sure,” Ash responds. “Only ones who were there was Kills and Cross. Cross’s gone missing. And Kills was too messed up in the head to fill anyone in. But that was years ago. The little scamp is probably dusted somewhere by now anyway. Guess we’ll never know.” Hollow has no further questions after that. Ash looks back at him with a hint of pity. He partly self-identifies with Hollow, seeing how similar the two are. One was trapped inside Chara’s games, while the other was trapped outside to spectate it. So, seeing Hollow downcast makes him feel blue too. Man, sympathy sucks. He breaks the ice again after a little bit. “You know, I lived here for a bit. During phase-3. Want to see where I stayed?”

Hollow perks up. He can’t help but be a little intrigued. What can he say? It’s not every day someone gets an insider’s view on how villains lived. “Why not?” He asks aimlessly with a shrug. “Though I really don’t see how this place is very livable at all.”  
“It takes a while to get used to Nightmare’s whole aesthetic. No fluffy carpets, no comfy cushions, no heartwarming pictures on the wall…” Ash thinks for a bit as he remembers the details of his previous life. “He said it had something to do with art theory. The way the place looked would make people feel some way, and he said it would give us a greater home advantage. I don’t really get it, though.”  
Hollow gets it. He’s the one intimidated by the dark, looming architecture. “Yeah. Me neither.”  
Before Hollow can wallow in his fear any longer, Ash suddenly gets chipper. “Hey! Here it is. Down this hall were the bedrooms.” He takes a turn with Hollow. His steps are much less careful, giving his companion the clue that traps weren’t set this far in. Everything looks the same. One could easily get lost in a temple like this. “Man, memories. Kills lived across from me, Horror right next to me… That room with no door? That was Cross’s. He kicked the door clean off and we never really got around to replacing it. See, here’s mine.”  
The Geno whistles a little as he passes by each door. Ash is leaning against the doorframe to one, motioning him to look inside. Through the open doorway, Hollow can make out simple furnishing. A broken bed, with the mattress laying next to it. A dresser with all the drawers open. A knife rack hanging on the wall. Pillows scattered about, some of which were torn in half.  
“It was my ‘angsty’ phase,” Ash explains.

“What do you mean? You’re still angsty.” Hollow chuckles as Ash flounders a little.

“I’m not that edgy, you fucking meatball.”

This just makes Hollow laugh harder. His voice echoes through the halls. Ash could swear it made the place a little brighter. “I see what you mean though,” Hollow giggles. “Looks like you threw more than one teenage temper tantrum in here.”  
“Alright, shut up and keep moving. Let’s get to the store room.” Ash puffs out his cheeks a bit and keeps moving on. He takes Hollow’s hand as he leads the other. Down one hall, through another… The castle is built like a maze. Each room is more sinister than the next. It feels like the home of a regal vampire… Hollow’s glad he has Ash to guide him.

The two pass by a line of painted portraits. Five paintings in a row, each one featuring the same subject: Nightmare himself. A horrendous creature of darkness and hatred. The first painting is almost palatable, but each one is more grotesque than the next. Hollow can’t pin point what’s unsettling about it… Other than the knife-sharp smile on Nightmare’s face.

Ash interrupts Hollow’s thoughts. “Hey,” he snaps, “stop looking like you saw a ghost. You know those aren’t real, right?”

“I-I know!” Hollow rubs his cheek a little in embarrassment. “They’re just… ugly.”

“Hah! Careful what you say.” Ash gets a coy look on his face. “Or he might crawl out of those paintings for you.”

“That’s not funny! You’ve worked with him. You’re used to seeing a face like that.”

Ash laughs. “You stop being scared when you realize what a brat he is. Yeah, he could squash you like a bug if he wanted, but I guess you get a little de-sensitized to that part.” He looks at the paintings one more time before tugging Hollow along. Ash decides now probably isn’t the time to tell Hollow that Nightmare _could_ indeed crawl out of those paintings. When he was alive, that is. It made for more than one good dramatic entrance.

Ahead is an elaborate door nearly three times the size of all the others. The knob on the door is a little silver skull. A gemstone is wedged into one eye to make a crude likeness of the King of Darkness. If Hollow’s learned one thing from this experience, it’s that Nightmare must have had an ego larger than his actual power.

Hollow bumps into Ash when the taller abruptly stops. He looks up at Ash questioningly. Ash puts a finger to his teeth, then points down at the floor. Hollow’s soul freezes over. Did they step on a trap without realizing it? Are spikes going to come out of the walls? Is the floor going to cave in? The AfterTale Sans looks down to see – there on the black marble floor – little rose petals scattered about. Phew… That doesn’t look so dangerous. Ash leans down and plucks one off the ground. He rubs it between his fingers. Still soft. Still fresh.

Ash whispers, “Someone’s been here.” He sneaks forward towards the door and examines it. The door is open the slightest bit. A slight flowery fragrance wafts out.

**_"Someone's still here."_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cast Met:
> 
> Ash (Dusttale's Dust)  
> Hollow (Aftertale's Geno)


End file.
